Somali pirates free Turkish ship after ransom

Hijackers' hometown celebrates reported $1.5 million bounty with big party BOSASSO, Somalia - Somali pirates freed a Turkish ship on Monday after the hijackers received what a pirate source said was a $1.5 million ransom.

A regional maritime official confirmed the bulk carrier Horizon-1, which was seized on July 8 with 23 Turkish crew members on board, had been released.
"We accepted $1.5 million to release the Turkish ship," one of the pirates, who gave his name as Abshir, said by telephone from the gangs' stronghold of Eyl.

"We delayed leaving because of accounting. We were sharing out the money. We disembarked from the ship this afternoon."Residents in Eyl said associates of the pirates held a big party to celebrate the ransom payment.
"There is too much noise. The pirates' friends in Eyl are celebrating. Some have gone to welcome the pirates who took the ransom," resident Abdiqadir Mohamed told Reuters by phone.
Andrew Mwangura of the Kenya-based East African Seafarers' Assistance Programme confirmed the ship, which was believed to be carrying sulphate when it was hijacked, had been released.
There was no immediate word on the condition of the crew.
Spanish media said at the time that the vessel had been en route from Jordan to Saudi Arabia when it was hijacked. Pirate raids have continued in the Indian Ocean and strategic Gulf of Aden despite foreign naval patrols off the lawless Horn of Africa state. Monsoon rains curbed attacks in recent months, but now they have started to pick up again.
Heavily armed gangs from Somalia  some made up of former fishermen angered by foreign boats fishing in Somali waters  have made tens of millions of dollars in ransoms by seizing boats in shipping lanes linking Europe to Asia. Tuna trawler hijacked
Meanwhile, Spain is working to secure the release of a Spanish tuna trawler hijacked in the Indian Ocean with a crew of 36, the defense minister said Monday.

Pirates seized the Alakrana on Friday about 375 nautical miles off the east coast of Somalia. On Monday it was anchored near an undisclosed Somali port, said its owner, Echebastar Fleet. The Defense Ministry had said Sunday it was actually moored at a port.

While the tuna trawler was still on the high seas, two alleged hijackers left it in a skiff and were captured by Spanish naval forces while heading for shore. One was shot and slightly wounded. Spanish forces are taking part in an EU anti-piracy flotilla.

A Spanish judge requested Sunday that those two suspects be sent to Madrid for investigation on charges of piracy and terrorism. Spanish news reports say there are still 11 pirates in control of the ship.

PARIS &#8211; Somali pirates in two skiffs fired on a French navy vessel early Wednesday after apparently mistaking it for a commercial boat, the French military said. The French ship gave chase and captured five suspected pirates.

No one was wounded by the volleys from the Kalashnikov rifles directed at La Somme, a 3,800-ton refueling ship, French military spokesman Rear Adm. Christophe Prazuck said.
La Somme "was probably taken for a commercial ship by the two small skiffs" about 250 nautical miles (290 statute miles) off Somalia's coast, Prazuck said.
"They understood their mistake too late," he said.

One skiff fled, and La Somme pursued the second one in an hour-long chase.
"There were five suspected pirates on board. No arms, no water, no food," Prazuck said.
France is a key member of the EU's naval mission, Operation Atalanta, fighting Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden. It has aggressively tracked and caught suspected pirates and handed over at least 22 to Kenya. An additional 15 suspects were brought to France for prosecution after allegedly seizing boats belonging to French nationals.
President Nicolas Sarkozy called for tougher action against piracy last year after dozens of attacks.